Derby De English

Forget your Bluegrass Derby, forget your Sydney Derby, in fact forget every other race that incorporates the word Derby because they all took they’re moniker from this race, the real mccoy, the one and only true Derby! It’s taken a while for the penny to drop with a lot of simsters but following the exploits of its two most recent winners, subsequent Horses of the Year, Sunnybank Memorial and Horseshoe Bay, this race is now top of the agenda to win. In the early days, the Derby De English was a mere distraction, some turf race that took place in a little island off the coast of Europe but now SM and HB have put it firmly on the map. Players are now specifically gearing their breeding programmes and juvenile campaigns with an eye to finding a horse that can go 1 mile 4 furlongs on turf, up and down the stiff gradients of Epsom’s switchback course. The true test of a thoroughbred! Let’s preview those runners that have accepted the challenge.

A juvenile sensation! Deservedly finished last year as the top turf 2yo. Contrast that with this campaign where he has still to put his head in front where it matters. I don’t suppose we’ll ever know what happened to him in the 2000 Guineas where from leading at halfway he seemed to completely lose interest in proceedings, and finished out with the washing. He bids to redeem his reputation in THE toughest race and how he’ll cope, we’ll have to wait and see. His pedigree suggests it could go either way but judged on his juvenile form, he looks to be all speed to me.

This is a horse with guts. Why? Because he’s a 10-furlong horse pushing himself to the limit, chasing horses who are better than him over 12-furlongs. Narrowly beaten 3 runs ago by arguably a more brilliant horse in Creepshow, he bettered that horse in the Sydney Derby by having more tenacity in the closing stages. He really was no match for the first two home that day and subsequently proved to be the best of the rest in a disappointing field for the Adelaide. He will again run his usual honest race but will again find those final 2 furlongs a stretch. A future star at 10-furlongs?

It’s no surprise to see this guy performing so well over 12 furlongs, the top and bottom of his pedigree is all stamina. Very much an unknown quantity having easily accounted for 3 rivals last time out in Puerto Rico and he could run a big race on Saturday. One to watch.

5 runs, 3 wins, unbeaten on turf, and a graded winner to boot! Certainly doesn’t lack the credentials! However (and there always is a ‘However’), he only squeaked home by the narrowest of margins in his G2 victory. Was he running out of stamina over 11 furlongs? Normally he likes to run on the lead but as he is in the same ownership as the other confirmed front-runner, Lex Luthor, what will connections decide? Owner Galileo is unlikely to want to see both his charges cutting each others throats so it’s likely this one will be reined back to allow Lex an uncontested lead. How will Giantsbane react to having to follow his stablemate?

Can lightning strike 3-times? Sunnybank Memorial rattled off 3 straight Derby wins, incorporating the Sydney, Adelaide and English Derbies in an unblemished sequence of 9 wins. The following year, Horseshoe Bay, achieved the same unique treble in a sequence of 6 wins. Incredibly, for a 3^rd year in a row, we have a horse looking to annex the English Derby to previous victories in the Sydney and Adelaide versions. Cortez’s wins in those previous 2 Derbies were both slower than his illustrious predecessors but it could be argued that he did all he needed to do, to win. He had clear daylight between himself and the runners-up on both occasions and it’s possible there may be more in the tank if required. We won’t know how good he is until he’s beaten but there is an excellent argument to suggest he’s every bit as good as those two horses who created the legacy he’s bidding to emulate.

A slow start to his career but a switch of surfaces has worked wonders. Only a head defeat over a mile prevents him from being unbeaten on the grass and a reproduction of his last effort would see him go very close on Saturday. No problems with staying the distance on pedigree and he will give the principals plenty to think about.

2 wins from 5 and never off the board. A staying-on 3^rd in the Adelaide Derby, he deserves to take his chance here. The race on Saturday should answer a few questions for connections. Whether to persevere at this distance or drop him back in trip as he may well have a future over a mile. Unlikely to turn the tables on those ahead of him in the Adelaide and it would be a result if he could finish in the frame.

Has form with a number of these and has tended to find one or two too good in graded stakes. On the plus side he was slowly pegging back Giantsbane in their Derby trial over 11 furlongs and of the pair, he may find the 12 furlongs less daunting. It wouldn’t be a total shock if he won but with a sire that won the 2000 guineas over a mile, his stamina is questionable.

The further he goes, the better he looks. The winner of the same Derby prep as Jupiter’s Moons last year and I’m sure connections would be thrilled if he could duplicate that ones runner-up position. He has yet to show some eye-popping numbers but he may only be doing all he needs to do. The outsider of the field at 28/1, I guarantee he will give a better showing than his price suggests.

A G3 winner over a mile last time, he is a top-class performer in that sphere. It’s a bold move by connections to move him up a further half mile but if you don’t try you’ll never know. If the race was over a mile he would be almost the favorite but I really have my doubts at 12 furlongs, his sire was a sprinter and his dam-sire best at 9-10 furlongs, if you pinned me down I’d say he won’t stay.

Runner-up to Cortez in the Sydney Derby having set a punishing pace up front, the question has to be asked, what could he do differently this time around to reverse placings? He was never able to shake off the attentions of Cortez who ran out the winner of their own private battle. Tactics are likely to be similar on Saturday and I would suggest that Cortez would need to run under par for Lex to be successful. What he will do is make it a true test for every horse in the race. A relentless galloper, he will not be stopping in front to wait for anyone.

If Cortez is to be beaten on merit, then this could be the guy to do it. He was never at the races in the Sydney Derby, getting buffeted to the back of the field where he was never able to mount a challenge. Connections have subsequently experimented by riding him closer to the pace in his last race and it paid off handsomely, running out a comfortable winner. If he can stay closer to the leaders in the first half of the race, then he has the talent to be able to run them down at the business end. His chance will depend on where he is as they round Tattenham Corner.

Had one of the more lengthier campaigns as a juvenile, running on 9 occasions and winning 5 times. In complete contrast, he has only had 4 runs this year and has acquitted himself well each time. No question he belongs in this field, he could be the surprise package. With a pedigree that demands he be tried over this trip, don’t be shocked if the race announcer is shouting this one home.

When winning a G2 race 3 races ago this looked a smart performer but in 2 subsequent runs he has been cruelly exposed. Looks to be in the 2^nd tier of runners at present where stakes races would be a formality for him but a race of this magnitude looks beyond him at the moment. Finished runner-up to Skills In Magic on his latest start and I can see no way he could possibly reverse that running. Will probably finish mid-division.

Summary

As regards strength in depth this is the best Derby De English field ever! Perhaps even the best sophomore field ever assembled for a 12-furlong turf race. The principals of the Sydney and Adelaide Derbies have shown up and have been accompanied by a whole host of unexposed types. I’ll attempt a prediction but there is always one who slips by un-noticed and gatecrashes the party.

1. Cortez
2. Skills In Magic
3. Lex Luthor
4. Strong Belwas